Baked potatoes have long been prepared and served as part of a traditional balanced meal. More recently, however, baked potatoes with toppings, such as cheese and broccoli, have become popular as a snack and as a meal in and of themselves. Typically, baked potatoes have been prepared in conventional convection ovens. A problem with using such ovens has been the relatively long baking times (approximately 45-55 minutes) required to prepare baked potatoes, as well as the inconvenience and inefficiency of operating a full-sized oven to bake one or two potatoes. Microwave ovens have provided a solution to the long baking times associated inherently with conventional convection ovens. In this respect, a microwave oven can prepare an average sized potato in approximately 5-15 minutes. A microwave oven, however, does not actually "bake" the potato and consequently the resulting potato lacks the flavor and texture of a potato baked by a conventional convection oven.
The present invention overcomes these and other drawbacks of prior art devices and provides a cooking appliance for quickly and easily preparing baked potatoes, which appliance is compact, convenient, and easy to use.